Janitors Demonstrate Needs

Led By Union, Nsu Workers Push For Raises, Health Insurance

DAVIE — Raising brooms and mops and beating on plastic buckets, more than 100 custodians on Thursday protested low wages and lack of health benefits at Nova Southeastern University.

"I'm here today because we've been treated in a bad way," said Wanda Rodriguez of Hollywood, who has worked at NSU for 11 years and makes about $7.70 an hour. "We deserve health insurance, and the money they pay us is not enough."

The "they" Rodriguez referred to is UNICCO Service Co., a Newton, Mass.-based company that contracts with NSU to provide support services.

The NSU workers, led by the Service Employees International Union, gathered at NSU's administration building to call on President Ray Ferrero Jr. to respond to their concerns.

A letter addressed to Ferrero referred to the University of Miami's recent decision to give its contract workers health-care benefits and a 25 percent raise -- after the union helped stage a walkout.

NSU's director of university relations, David Dawson, accepted the letter on Ferrero's behalf but could not say whether the private university would follow UM, which also contracts with UNICCO.

NSU values its relationship with the 300 or so support staff who "take care of us and our employees," Dawson said. But the university also values its agreement with UNICCO, he said.

A UNICCO spokesman, Doug Bailey, said the union had unfairly targeted the company.

The company, which employs some 20,000 workers nationwide, must bid against other firms for contracts such as the ones it holds with UM and NSU, Bailey said.

FOR THE RECORD - CORRECTION PUBLISHED SATURDAY, MARCH 25, 2006The name of Nova Southeastern University's public safety director was misspelled on Page 1B in some editions on Friday. He is Bronson Bias.

"The market for this kind of labor in southern Florida is what it is," said Bailey, speaking by phone from the Boston area. "We can't arbitrarily raise the pay if no on else wants to do that."

But the workers were not convinced.

After their brief meeting with Dawson, they donned union T-shirts and joined a larger group gathered on the sidewalk across from the University Drive entrance to NSU.

Chanting ,"SM-m, se puede" ("Yes, we can"), the motto of Mexican-American labor activist CM-isar ChM-avez, union leaders said the protest was intended to raise public awareness.

"Every janitor here has a family and has kids," said Eric Brakken of SEIU. "They need the help of [NSU] to say, `We're willing to put enough money out there so UNICCO can afford to pay decent wages and health benefits.'"

SEIU said the average UNICCO janitor is paid close to the Florida minimum wage of $6.40 an hour while the company maintains it pays about a dollar more.

SEIU wants NSU to make an offer similar to UM's raise so the NSU workers do not have to go on strike, Brakken said.

"The Nova workers will decide if they want to go on strike when the time is right," Brakken said.

Douane D. James can be reached at ddjames@sun-sentinel.com or 954-385-7930.